Boy Charity Quilt

I attend a monthly Block of the Month club at a local quilt shop, Quilts Etc.  Each year in December they do a quilt drive.  I had plans to make a cute girl quilt -- in fact, I even finished the top.  But then I got the details of the quilt drive -- they are for Primary Children's hospital and they really needed boy quilts.  They said that even some of the boys have to choose from quilts with flowers!  :)  Being the mother of 3 very boyish boys, I decided I'd better make a boy quilt to donate.  

I had some strips of fabric left over from this quilt I made for my brother.  I knew I needed a pattern that had plenty of background fabric because I didn't have a whole lot of the scraps.  I added in a few other fabrics, cut them into 6-inch squares, and used the Falling Charms pattern from Missouri Star Quilt company.  It is the 3rd time I've used this pattern.  It is a quick one!

I am still working on improving my stitch length when I free motion quilt.  So I stuck to my familiar loopy quilting.

I actually really like the bright green back.  It is all from my stash.  I enjoyed making this quilt all from fabric I already had.  I also remembered that for past quilt drives, boy quilts were particularly needed.  I think I will try and plan on it for next time.  Perhaps Boy Quilts will become my specialty.

Christmas Snowflakes - Q4 Finish

Well, I tried to get a nice snowy shot of this Christmas quilt.  It came out very hazy.  Did I mention our camera is old?  If we have time, we'll get one before Christmas.  I couldn't decide which fuzzy photo to share, so I'm sharing both.  ;)  This is #5 on my 4th quarter finish-a-long goals.

I made this quilt last year following a Snowflake Quilt-Along on Bernina's website.  The pattern and tutorial are by Faith Jones of Fresh Lemon Quilts. 

I quilted it with straight lines -- 2-inch crosshatches.  I think I would have liked it better if the lines were closer together, but I didn't have the patience to do that.  Oh, and AFTER I finished quilting it, I found a very large tuck on the back.  I am not going to unpick all that quilting.    I assume there is nothing you can do to fix the problem, so I guess I'll just ignore it.  It is finished off with a scrappy binding.  

I am linking up to the 2016 Finish-A-Long Q4 party at A Quilter's Table.

His Team Quilt - Q4 Finish

This is #4 on my 4th quarter finish-a-long goals.  When my husband and I first started dating, he may have been disappointed to discover that I was a BYU fan.  BYU and Utah are pretty serious rivals.  I specifically remember having to calm him down a bit during one conversation about the rivalry.  (Those who know Brian may have a hard time imagining me calming him down.)  

So I've had it on my mind to make him a quilt, and when I saw this pattern in the book Improvising Tradition by Alexandra Ledgerwood, I thought I'd better just do it, even if it did mean I'd have to buy UofU fabric.  ;)  I seriously thought about making the gray rows BYU blue rows.  It would have been cute.  But I am not so sure my husband would sit under it if I did that.  :)  I am giving the quilt to him for Christmas.  Even though I bound it there on the couch with him by my side, it will still be a surprise.  He didn't ask to see it and the back was facing up most of the time.  So obviously he isn't too interested in quilts, but I am pretty sure he'll like this one.  :)

I like this pattern because it isn't a loud "I am a college sport quilt!" quilt.  The improvisational piecing was fun too.  I quilted the light gray in some large wavy lines, and the dark gray in loops.  

The back is some flannel that I got on a great sale at Connecting Threads.  I wish I would have bought more.  It feels soft and thick, so I think it will wear well.  

On a side note, I have been very anxious today...not over anything horrible, just a few small things.  I had a couple hours of sewing time and I just feel so much better.  Quilting does that for me -- it calms me.  It distracts me.  It makes me happy.  :)

I am linking up to Quilt Story's Fabric Tuesday

and to Finish it Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts.

I am also linking up to the 2016 Finish-A-Long Q4 party at A Quilter's Table.

Baby Girl Quilt - Q4 Finish

This is #7 on my 4th quarter finish-a-long goals.  A while back I bought a "7-inch Stacker" by Riley Blake.  It is the only time I've seen that size.  I had a hard time knowing what to make, but decided on this star pattern.  The fabric line is called "Unforgettable" by My Minds Eye.

I made this as a donation quilt for Primary Children's hospital.  A local quilt shop is collecting quilts to donate to Primary Children's hospital, so I thought this would be a good opportunity to make a little girl quilt.  Of course, I found out more information a few days ago and they really need BOY quilts and their size specifications were larger.  So I'm not sure I will be donating it this time. 

The quilting is simple, but I like it.  The back is a really soft flannel and I think the quilt will be a very cozy one for a baby girl somewhere!

I am linking up to the 2016 Finish-A-Long Q4 party at A Quilter's Table.

Finish Along Goals - Q4

Here are some goals for this quarter.

1. Summer Sampler - this one has been on my list before!  I have decided to reconfigure the blocks into a different setting.  Shouldn't take too much unpicking, but I hope the Shot Cotton doesn't fray too much!

2. Mystery Quilt.

3.  Persimmon 4 Patch OR Brown Sampler (not pictured) - I hope to finish one for of these for a gift, but haven't decided which one.  Tops are finished.

  

4.  Husband's quilt - didn't finish it for his birthday.  Guess I better finish it for Christmas.  I quilted half of it, then ran out of thread....need to get back to it.

5.  Christmas Quilt - Snowflake Mystery quilt.  The top is finished, backing is ready.  Need to baste and quilt.  One day I will get a picture of it.

6.  Cousin Quilt - Started this recently.  I like it!

7.  A baby girl quilt -- I've had this precut for a while now.  Our local quilt store is doing a quilt drive for Primary Children's hospital.  Thought it would be fun to make a HST quilt.  

I am linking up to the 2016 Finish-A-Long Q4 party at A Quilter's Table.

BOM Sample Quilt - Q3 Finish

Here is my 2016 Block of the Month quilt that I did with a local quilt shop, Quilts Etc.  I am really happy with how it turned out.  This BOM club is a little different than others I've seen.  They only give you the patterns for the blocks, not for the setting.  So each person comes on the last day with different layouts.  It is so fun to see all the different settings. 

I came up with my setting after seeing a similar one in the Sister Samplers book.  I modified it to look like one of the blocks in this Frivols quilt.  

I also tried a "Quilt as you Go" technique, also modified a bit.  A common QAYG technique is to quilt the individual blocks, then add sashing to piece them together. What I did was quilt each quadrant, then added the big white sashing strips to join them.  It worked out well and was so much easier to quilt than wrestling the entire quilt through the machine.

Here is the back -- pieced together with a Table Runner Kit and some extra fabric from the Good Neighbors line by Amanda Jean Nyberg.  I got them all for a very nice price at Connecting Threads.  My layout is a little wonky, but it matches.  :)

And here is a close up of the quilting -- once again, all straight line.  The QAYG technique made it easy to do each quadrant at a diagonal, then the sashing at a horizontal/vertical line, all without having to pivot to change directions.

On the above photo you can see that I used the wrong white in the border.  It looks so obvious in the daylight -- not obvious at all in my basement sewing room.  :)  When I first started adding the sashing I noticed the difference.  I went out and bought some of the correct white and made the middle portion match.  But I didn't want to remake the triangles on the outside.   

And here is my cute boy who wanted to pose with my quilt.  We were glad his socks matched the quilt so well.  :) 

And here's a bonus picture of some blocks I made this month for the charity bee do. good stitches. 

I am linking up to the 2016 Finish-A-Long at A Quilter's Table.

What we did this summer....

This summer was good -- good and hot!  Ugh.  Andrew played in 4 soccer tournaments -- I don't know how those boys survived running around in 100 degree weather.  I barely made it sitting on the sidelines.  :)  Eric dreaded going to all those soccer games.  Luckily he has become fast friends with someone from school and he spent some good afternoons at his house.  Tanner also spent a ton of time with his twin friends.  I wish I had a picture of those kids.  They are too cute (and loud and crazy.)

One Saturday while Andrew and I were at a soccer tournament, Brian took the other boys to an air show.  It was incredibly crowded, so they ended up going to the museum there on base instead.  They saw some stunts from afar.  

We did manage to leave town a couple of times.  First was to the cabin in Island Park for the 4th of July.  Here are the boys in the lake, cooling off.  It looks fun and leisurely here.  Too bad I didn't take a video of the excitement of finding little leeches stuck to them when they got out!  Yuck!  This is the first time we've encountered leeches there -- hopefully the last too.  :)

Brian, Andrew, and Tanner went on a hike with the Larsen cousins.  They are avid hikers, so it's not to go with someone who knows the way.  Eric didn't want to go so he and I stayed at the cabin and relaxed.



The last week of summer we drove to Lake Tahoe, California.  We had never been there and that drive felt LONG.  Partway there we stopped at a rest stop at the Bonneville Salt Flats.  I have never been there, and it was pretty cool.  I wished I had a cool, modern quilt to photograph there.  But check out that salt!  It looks like they are standing in snow....but no, it is all salt.  We didn't spend much time there because we were trying to drive to the next town to go to church.  (And there are not many towns to stop at!)

In Lake Tahoe we stayed at a resort right next to the lake.  The lake was perfect -- for 200 yards or more it was only a few feet deep.  The kids had a great time playing catch, using their goggles to look into clear water, and just messing around.  

Next to the hotel was a fun statue of Mark Twain.  Also, one afternoon we went miniature golfing at an iconic place there in Lake Tahoe.  It was a lot of fun.

Brian had heard about the Calavaris State Park from a coworker.  We decided to brave the 2 hours drive because the boys have wanted to see the redwoods for a long time.  These Sequoia Trees aren't quite as tall, but they are actually wider around.  The drive there was over the mountains and was the most curvy road I've ever been on.  I am grateful for a husband who is willing to drive, and who does it so well.  I was also relieved that after all those curves that Andrew didn't get too sick.  We did have to pull over once to let him get some air, and it happened to be right next to the elevation sign where Brian had already planned to take a picture.

"All we did was drive and drive and drive, look at some big trees, and drive again!"  - Tanner

We took a paddle boat cruise of the lake.  I was very excited about this, because I love being out on the water.  However, it ended up being a little too long for the kids, and too crowded for me.  The highlight for them were the $7.00 french fries we ordered.  The highlight for me and Brian was the scenery -- the lakes color was so pretty, changing from turquoise blue to emerald green.

And a few days after we returned from Lake Tahoe, it was back to school!  And now they are all in school!  I feel like this is a changing moment, mostly in spirit because going from Preschool to Kindergarten only buys me about 3 more hours a week.  But it has been good.  Andrew is enjoying his time in Middle School -- I think the class changes has been really good for him.  Eric has a good teacher and is enjoying recess.  And Tanner is getting used to going to school every day.

April - June Update

Actually, I am will start with what we did a little before summer.  :)

Eric turned 9 in April.  Eric is a compassionate, excitable, sensitive, athletic boy.  He used to play soccer like his big brother, but has decided he prefers basketball and football.  He had a good year in 3rd grade.

In May we put some flowers on Grandma's grave on Mother's Day.  Each year we go on Mother's or Father's Day.  I take a picture of the boys next to a water faucet.  You can see how they've grown.  (Top: Tanner, Eric, Andrew in 2016, Middle: Andrew and Tanner in 2013, Bottom: Andrew and Eric in 2009)

The Spring was a little colder and wetter than usual, I think.  Andrew had some pretty cold soccer games.  This is one of Tanner's outfits for the game -- 3 hats to keep him warm.

Andrew graduated from the 5th grade.  It was a good year and he had a very kind teacher.  But he was ready for summer and for a change!  On to Middle School!  I am glad he's so ready, because I'm not sure I am.

 Father's Day is always exciting for the boys.  And I guess Brian likes it too.  :)

Eric went to Cub Country, a day camp with the Cub Scouts.  As is typical, he wasn't too thrilled to go, but once he got there he had a good time.  Brian went up as a volunteer on the second day.

 

Christmas Quilt #1 - Q3 Finish

I have made and given several quilts.  I guess I need some more friends because I have run out of people to give quilts to.  :) I feel a little bashful about giving a second quilt.  But I cannot stop.  I've decided to make some Christmas quilts to give -- that way the recipients can pull them out at Christmas time, but don't have to feel obligated to display/use them on a daily basis.  

My first one is made from "Evergreen" by Basic Grey.  It is made from a layer cake pattern from Missouri Star Company called "Flock of Geese."  I accidentally laid the blocks out in a different direction than the original quilt -- but it doesn't look a lot different.  I was pretty tired of making HST by the end of this quilt!    

After quilting my Polish Pottery quilt with straight lines, I decided to do this one with straight lines too.  I'm liking it.  The quilting is not very dense, which makes it drape nicely.

I was lucky enough to have some fabric in my stash that worked well for the backing.  I didn't have quite enough so I used some of the extra layer cake squares.  Unfortunately I didn't line up the quilt very straight so the stripe up the back is crooked.  At least it's the back.  :)

I am linking up to the 2016 Finish-A-Long at A Quilter's Table.
I am linking up to Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation.

Q3 Finish - Polish Pottery Quilt

Another finish!  This is my Polish Pottery Quilt.   

And this is my Polish Pottery.  

Last year I won a fat quarter bundle of fabric from Lady Belle Fabric.  "Bluebird" by Cotton + Steele.  Lucky me!  All those blues made me think of my Polish Pottery.  I have a collection of these dishes from Poland.  My sister lived in Prague, where she and her friends would make "Pottery Runs" to Poland.  When she came back to the US, she would bring each of us a piece of pottery.  So nice!  We have a big family so that is pretty generous.  We use the pottery frequently for dinner.  And I love how it looks on the open shelves in my kitchen.

Anyway, I found this pattern by Jeni Baker in the Scraps, Inc. Volume One book.  I used most of the dark/medium prints.  I still have several low-volume prints from the bundle.  This quilt is interesting because when I look at it closely, I wonder if I should not have used some of the fabrics -- like the purplish one, and the bright blue.  But from a distance I think the bright blue gives a little vibrancy to the quilt.  Anyway, I really like it "from a distance."  (Does anyone else have a Bette Midler song go through their head now?)

I quilted this with straight lines and I love how simple the back looks.

I am linking up to the 2016 Finish-A-Long at A Quilter's Table.

I am linking up at My Quilt Infatuation's 

Needle and Thread Thursday.